Ownership Verified: Nitrous Blue 2018 Focus RS

i am envious of this machine, the color, my blue fiesta isn't blue enough ?
 
Oh, I definitely approve of this! Congratulations.

I just hope your car came with a lifetime chiropractic warranty. A good one, too, not the snake oil type.
 
So apparently winter isn't over yet...

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Following @Galantti's advice, I tried the drift mode. Not bad, I can see myself using it in a few situations, but race/soft or sport/tc off will remain my normal modes.


 
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i am sorta sad i didn't go with that car when i got the a7, but atleast these get driven (i'd just drive it like every other day, maybe less when i am oncall).
 
Installed the summer wheels yesterday, and with the cool temperature (between 1 and 8° C), it is even more tail happy than with the winter tires...

 
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YouTube's Matt Farah sold his RS recently to a friend and wrote up his 'long term review' of the car in Road and Track and what it was like to live with every day in LA.

https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a25304719/ford-focus-rs-long-term-wrap-up/

I'm curious how many of these thoughts you may relate to after a few years of ownership.



So, 6 months and 5000 km in, driving impressions...

I'm still in love. That car turned out even more fun in winter than my Subaru was. The ride is harsh, but livable.

I've now had the summer tires/wheels on for a week, and my 2 fears didn't materialized... The car is as fun on summers as it is on winters, and while the ride is slightly harsher, it is still acceptable.

I have only done 1 medium trip (250km to destination), and while the seats are not as confortable as in the Legacy, I don't think doing a longer trip would be a problem.

Driving it with the windows down let in more noise (the interior is too quiet without the FENG), and the exhaust pops are even more obnoxious, and that's a good thing :D

My average fuel consumption just dropped below 14.5 l/100km, and it will probably improve a bit with the warmer temperatures.

Every time I take the car it put a smile on my face, I feel ridiculous in it, yet I don't care. I've come to terms with the fact that this is my midlife crisis car :ROFLMAO:
 
14.5l? That’s crazy for a 2.3! ?

Interesting how your feelings of the ride are different from so many reviews.
 
That's the best fuel economy I could hope for on the highway on cruise control at a reasonable speed.

I'm never going to get anywhere near those numbers on average.
 
Every time I take the car it put a smile on my face, I feel ridiculous in it, yet I don't care. I've come to terms with the fact that this is my midlife crisis car :ROFLMAO:

I am glad to hear you're enjoying it. :D
 
That's the best fuel economy I could hope for on the highway on cruise control at a reasonable speed.
:oops: Really? For cruise control? How high is that engine revving if you’re on a steady cruise at 110-120 kph?
 
:oops: Really? For cruise control? How high is that engine revving if you’re on a steady cruise at 110-120 kph?

Traffic was horrible this morning, so I was not able to reach 100 kph, but at 86 kph, rpm is 2000 in 6th gear.

[edit]
Extrapolated to 100 kph, that gives 2325 RPM, which I was able to test and confirm tonight.

Further extrapolation to 120 gives 2791 RPM, which seems correct according to my very poor memory.
[edit2] Confirmed this morning, ~2800 RPM @ 120 kph [/edit2]
[/edit]

And to clarify, the best instant fuel economy I can get at normal highway speed on cruise control is between 8.0 and 8.5 l/100km.
 
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Missed a milestone by 1km today :(

 
Last Sunday I went for the track for the first time with the Focus.

The track is called Mecaglisse, and is located about 1h30m north of Montreal. It's a very tight small track, developed primarily for SuperMotard racing. The slow speed and sand runoff makes it great for initiation to track days. It is where I first tried track on a motorcycle 14 years ago, so it feels appropriate to continue the tradition with the Focus.

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It was a perfect day, sunny and warm, and the RS did not disappoint at first, but showed it's limitation as the sessions went on.

I had heard in the past that when pushed on the track, the AWD system would overheat and turn off after approximately 15 minutes of riding.
During our first 15 minute session, it happened to me on the last lap before the checkered flag.

I was hoping it would stay that way, but as the day went on it started doing it at around the 7th minute of my sessions, which is honestly quite disappointing. A faster more open track might be more forgiving.

Video of my fourth and last session, Drive Mode Selection and AWD turned themselves off after 7 minutes or so, and my estimated fuel range dropped from 80 km to 20 during those 7 minutes, so I called it quit early (there was time for at least 3 more 15 minute sessions):



Previous session (third of the day), DMS and AWD turned themself off after 7 minutes, so I slowed down, and eventually they came back up, just as the session was ending.


Selfie on the way to the track:
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Car lineup:
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Looks like a magazine comparo:
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Waiting for a session to start:
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Final turn:
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Chasing after an M2
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Almost getting a wheel of the ground
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Other cars:

Civic Type R
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E39 M5 ?
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Cayman
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Different Cayman
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IS300
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Focus
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Miata
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M3 and BRZ
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RSX and RS3
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S2000 and M2
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Porsche 944? Turbo
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I still enjoyed the day, and will probably go again. Would be nice to be able to do full 15 minutes sessions without AWD issues though.
 
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Good stuff! I had a Race Red Focus RS for a night last week. Forgot what a blast those things are even on the road.

I'll ask around about your AWD drop out.
 
That track looks very nice but HOLY SHIT is it narrow...
 
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